Nintendo Switch Thread

[yourbeliefs]

I have been keeping my eye out for some kind of bundle since I travel a lot in the summer. So far the only bundles I have seen aren't actually a deal. They just include a game and/or accessory at full price.

I don't know how stock has been in local stores but I know that Amazon has been sold out consistently since launch. A lot of gaming websites made a big deal out of the fact that they actually had stock for several hours last Friday but even then they were only available to Prime members.

I came close to buying one on Friday but I'm still kind of holding out for a bundle that includes Zelda or Mario Kart because I know they will do something like that once supply catches up to demand. Right now there is no need for them to include a game when they appear to be selling them as fast as they can make them.

Yeah I'm hoping for a good bundle this Christmas. I need either Mario Kart or Super Mario Odyssey. Mario Kart will be great for the kids, and I'd like to be able to play a "different" Mario game. Ever since Super Mario Galaxy 2 the series has been rather stagnant IMO. The 3D World and "New" series of games weren't bad but I think we're due for something really new and different in the series.

 

[Derwin0]

Got Mario Kart for the boys. They playing through it all weekend long. Great game, though no real changes from previous Mario Kart's.

Local multiplayer though is a nice feature, as they can each be on their own switch.

 

[yourbeliefs]

Nintendo has released more details on the upcoming DLC pack for Breath of the Wild.

http://zelda.com/breath-of-the-wild/news/expansion-pass-dlc-pack-1-detailed/

The game also now supports MULTIPLE languages across all platforms.

 

[Derwin0]

The "Trial of the Sword" reminds me of the "Cave of Ordeals" from Twilight Princess.

Be nice if it had the same "no enemy" trick.

 

[yourbeliefs]

Looks like we're getting of all things, a Mario and Rabid Rabbids crossover RPG for the Switch.

http://kotaku.com/source-the-rumored-mario-x-rabbids-rpg-is-real-coming-1794849712

This was actually first reported back in January but this is the first formal collaboration of the story.

 

[yourbeliefs]

Nintendo eShop on Switch will now allow users to save their credit card information so they don't need it for every purchase.

https://www.polygon.com/2017/5/9/15592320/nintendo-switch-eshop-update-credit-card

While I know this is definitely nice for some people, I gave up on storing my information after the PSN hack. Having it separate helps cut down on impulse purchases, and/or you can just buy purchase cards and use funds that way to be more secure.

 

[yourbeliefs]

While the Nintendo Switch is certainly selling well, in the world of non-gamers, it's something that the vast majority don't know of.

https://www.polygon.com/2017/5/10/15612580/nintendo-switch-marketing-non-gamers

 

[yourbeliefs]

I was debating putting this in the Facepalm thread but I figured this was too Switch specific to put there..

Remember how Nintendo said that voice communication for the Switch online service would be done via a smart device, because doing it WITHIN THE GAME SYSTEM LIKE EVERY CONSOLE ONLINE SYSTEM EVER MADE was apparently a stupid idea? Well, low and behold, here is how you're expected to play Splatoon 2 with other people:



More info/pictures here:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1383633

 

[Derwin0]

I was debating putting this in the Facepalm thread but I figured this was too Switch specific to put there..

Remember how Nintendo said that voice communication for the Switch online service would be done via a smart device, because doing it WITHIN THE GAME SYSTEM LIKE EVERY CONSOLE ONLINE SYSTEM EVER MADE was apparently a stupid idea? Well, low and behold, here is how you're expected to play Splatoon 2 with other people:



More info/pictures here:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1383633

Just do what my boys do for Mario Kart, put the phone on speaker phone.

As it is, I understand why Nintendo doesn't have voice chat in the games. It's because their audience skews much younger than Xbox & PS, and those games are full of cussing teenagers throwing out F bombs and N words.

Also, this is a Hori product, not Nintendo.

 

[king3pj]

Just do what my boys do for Mario Kart, put the phone on speaker phone.

As it is, I understand why Nintendo doesn't have voice chat in the games. It's because their audience skews much younger than Xbox & PS, and those games are full of cussing teenagers throwing out F bombs and N words.

Also, this is a Hori product, not Nintendo.

This doesn't make sense to me because they are still supporting voice chat. They are just doing it through a smartphone app instead of handling it through the console directly. Honestly, I would have been more forgiving of them just saying that Nintendo makes games for kids and they feel more comfortable not supporting voice chat to protect them. Another option would be to copy Sony and Microsoft and let parental controls shut off voice chat for kids but honestly how many parents will even know that exists, let alone how to turn it on?

This headset might not be made by Nintendo but it is a the official chat headset for Splatoon which is a first party Nintendo game. It's a pretty safe bet that Nintendo had some input into its design and this, or something very similar to it, will be the way voice chat works on the Switch for all games.

When you think about it, I'm not sure how else they could do a headset with the way they designed this app based chat approach. What they have here is a bad design that most people won't be happy with.There has to be a wire plugged into the switch to get game audio and there has to be a wire plugged into the phone to get chat audio. There has to be a device in between to mix the two and output sound to the headset.

This would have been so much simpler if they just built chat into the Switch like every other console. Either that or they should have just said that the Switch doesn't support voice chat. If they are asking people to use a smartphone app for voice chat anyways those people could have just as easily used Skype or another third party voip app and not be dependent on Nintendo's online service to support voice chat for any given game.

 

[yourbeliefs]

Well as we know this is just one solution for online play. I'll wait and see what Nintendo recommends/displays as a solution before I jump entirely on the NeoGAF bandwagon.

In related news, it looks like the Paid Online Service is launching in 2018, with the "trial" starting in summer 2017. Pricing has also been confirmed.

http://www.nintendo.com/switch/online-service/

 

[king3pj]

Well as we know this is just one solution for online play. I'll wait and see what Nintendo recommends/displays as a solution before I jump entirely on the NeoGAF bandwagon.

Nintendo already said that voice chat would be handled through an app on smartphones/tablets when they did their big Switch focused Nintendo Direct months ago. Unless they come up with a way to stream game audio to the smartphone app they are going to need an adapter that can mix game audio from the switch and voice audio from the phone into one headset.

In reality I think most people will just stick to their TV speakers for game audio and do chat audio with the app and their phone's earbuds. It might not be ideal but people already have everything they need to do it this way without buying this crazy headset. Voice chat probably isn't going to be an issue for most Switch games anyways. It's not like people are going to be playing Overwatch, COD, and Destiny on the Switch and most Nintendo first party games aren't online focused.

The other thing I read today is that the cable is only 21" long so this headset is really only meant to be used in handheld mode. No one sitting a reasonable distance from their TV will be able to use it in docked mode. This is another reason for people to just let their TV speakers handle game audio instead of buying this thing.

In related news, it looks like the Paid Online Service is launching in 2018, with the "trial" starting in summer 2017. Pricing has also been confirmed.

http://www.nintendo.com/switch/online-service/

Not bad. Everyone gets a pretty substantial free trial and $20 per year is a good price when compared to Xbox Live Gold and PS Plus at $60. Nintendo has almost no online games when compared to those other platforms and the free games part of the service isn't nearly as good but at least they reflected that in the pricing.

 

[Derwin0]

This doesn't make sense to me because they are still supporting voice chat. They are just doing it through a smartphone app instead of handling it through the console directly.

Little kids typically don't have smartphones, so this way protects the very young from the vulgar teens.

Not saying I like it, but I can see Nintendo's rationale.

 

[Derwin0]

Not bad. Everyone gets a pretty substantial free trial and $20 per year is a good price when compared to Xbox Live Gold and PS Plus at $60. Nintendo has almost no online games when compared to those other platforms and the free games part of the service isn't nearly as good but at least they reflected that in the pricing.

Good, with 3 kids who each have their own switch, $20/yr won't hurt so much.

 

[king3pj]

Little kids typically don't have smartphones, so this way protects the very young from the vulgar teens.

Not saying I like it, but I can see Nintendo's rationale.

That's true but lots of young kids do have access to a tablet or iPod Touch even if they don't have their own phone yet. Assuming it's iOS or Android based and not some special tablet made for kids this voice chat app will run on that too.

This might have all been part of Nintendo's plan to protect kids but I think it's more likely that they still aren't used to everything being online the way Microsoft and Sony are. They have been trying to adapt to this since the Wii and they do seem to be getting better but it's still not their forte.

 

[yourbeliefs]

Little kids typically don't have smartphones, so this way protects the very young from the vulgar teens.

Not saying I like it, but I can see Nintendo's rationale.

A smarter idea would have been just to put in parental controls that would disable voice chat as opposed to doing based on the idea that children don't have access to smart devices. I've seen kids as young as 2 use them, so the age argument doesn't really make much sense IMO.

 

[king3pj]

A smarter idea would have been just to put in parental controls that would disable voice chat as opposed to doing based on the idea that children don't have access to smart devices. I've seen kids as young as 2 use them, so the age argument doesn't really make much sense IMO.

I agree but the problem with parental controls is that parents need to know they exist and how to properly configure them. This is getting better as parents these days have more experience with video games and technology in general but parental controls are still something that most parents will probably never set up on their kid's consoles.

I still agree that parental controls are still a better way to handle things than arbitrarily making the technology worse for everyone. Even if a parent doesn't know the parental controls exist, how to turn them on, or simply doesn't think they are necessary the console manufacturers have done their part by including proper parental controls. If the parent doesn't take advantage of them that's on them, not Nintendo.

 

[yourbeliefs]

I agree but the problem with parental controls is that parents need to know they exist and how to properly configure them. This is getting better as parents these days have more experience with video games and technology in general but parental controls are still something that most parents will probably never set up on their kid's consoles.

I still agree that parental controls are still a better way to handle things than arbitrarily making the technology worse for everyone. Even if a parent doesn't know the parental controls exist, how to turn them on, or simply doesn't think they are necessary the console manufacturers have done their part by including proper parental controls. If the parent doesn't take advantage of them that's on them, not Nintendo.

Nintendo is still too concerned with their kid friendly image and it's stifling their decision making. I realize that Nintendo still is dominant in the handheld market, which is used primarily by kids, but I think it's fair to say at this point that Nintendo's main market needs to shift to the parents of kids who grew up on Nintendo and want their kids to experience the same things they did growing up. The sad fact is that while Nintendo may be well known, it isn't nearly the powerhouse and recognized brand that it used to be when it comes to gamers born after 2010, which would be the group of people that Nintendo is trying to "protect."



Again, I'll temper my feelings on this whole thing until everything is finally revealed about the online plans. $20 a year is a smart price point, and it's quite apparent that Nintendo heard loud and clear that offering 2 games a month that were only good for 1 month wasn't going to fly in today's marketplace.

 

[king3pj]

Nintendo is still too concerned with their kid friendly image and it's stifling their decision making. I realize that Nintendo still is dominant in the handheld market, which is used primarily by kids, but I think it's fair to say at this point that Nintendo's main market needs to shift to the parents of kids who grew up on Nintendo and want their kids to experience the same things they did growing up. The sad fact is that while Nintendo may be well known, it isn't nearly the powerhouse and recognized brand that it used to be when it comes to gamers born after 2010, which would be the group of people that Nintendo is trying to "protect."



Again, I'll temper my feelings on this whole thing until everything is finally revealed about the online plans. $20 a year is a smart price point, and it's quite apparent that Nintendo heard loud and clear that offering 2 games a month that were only good for 1 month wasn't going to fly in today's marketplace.

To be honest, if they didn't have the kid focused niche they wouldn't really have anything. That's not to say that adults can't or don't like Nintendo games but Microsoft, Sony, and Steam all cater to the adult gaming audience much better than Nintendo does. Nostalgia is a big part of Nintendo but if they can't get kids to want to play their games on their own they aren't going to be successful no matter how much parents want their kids to like the same stuff they did.

Luckily the Switch seems to be selling as fast as they can make it. They seem to be back on track after trying to chase the Wii Sports gimmick crowed they fell into with the Wii. If they keep selling at the pace they are right now they won't be that far off the Wii U's lifetime sales in the first year of the Switch.

 

[Derwin0]

Wait til they put a mainline pokemon onto the switch, that'll have it shatter Wii records.